Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Too bad I probably won't be back in that area for a LONG time.

Today as I wait for snow to start falling, I was thinking of simple things I enjoy while I'm out in the field (besides the herps); not long-winded stories but things that can be summed up in a sentence or two:

The eyeshine from hundreds of tiny wolf spiders covering the desert floor.

The glassy/metallic "clink" of limestone fragments kicked out from under foot.

Those were the two that came to mind immediately; feel free to add to the list.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

The VERY best is a storm rolling in from Mexico while cruising the river road or while camping in Big Bend. That smell, the night air going from dry heat to cool breeze, the lightning in the distance and best of all the seclusion! Of course seeing a blonde (suboc), alterna, celenops, lepidus or even a variable colored ground snake crossing the road doesn't hurt either. Running into other herp nuts, ect. ect. ect...Don't stay gone too long senor...
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HCU
Snakes of Hudspeth County, Texas

That smell

I can think of several smells--the smell of the dust changing to mud, the smell of sage, and the smell of creosote bush (personal favorite).

I also like turning off the flashlight on a cut for a few seconds and just looking straight up. The sky looks as big as, well, Texas.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

I was gonna say that too Chris, the stars at night
are big and bright...
maybe corny but so true.
seeing an indigo bunting perched on a cut in the middle of nowhere...
watching a tarantula haul an adult mouse up to her lair...the very soft sound of an owl in flight VERY nearby...
and the sage, yep, the sage...ahhhhhhh

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Todd Hughes

I miss...

1. The butterflies you get at dusk.
2. The scramble to get gas and all your equipment ready 30 minutes before leaving for the night. We call it "Running The Gauntlet".
3. Trying to figure out what tv shows or movies to watch during the day.
4. Listening to all your favorite or lucky tunes in the car. Mine is STONE TEMPLE PILOTS..CORE album.
5. Trying to figure out what will be the first snake of the night each night...
6. The smells of the southwest... such as Ran over skunk. (We don't have many skunks in DFW).
7. The conversations that always happen during hunting time... like the usual "you know just behind that layer of rocks theres like 5 Alterna..."
8. The feeling of the sun on your face once you leave the room in the afternoon (post nap).
9. Wondering who your gonna run into during the night... which other hunters are having luck.
10. The lucky feeling that comes with spending 1 week out of 52 each year to spend with friends, in the desert I love, looking for snakes that most dont even care about...

Best Wishes,

Steven X

The thing I like most is the excitement and anticipation you get the last hour of daylight and during sunset. I call the 1st hour of darkness the golden hour . We have had our most memorable finds in the the 1st hour or so.

oh yeah, hangin' with the Forkster is always fun and insightful, for me it isn't west Texas without the Forkinator!

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Todd Hughes

Really, it's about the people you get to meet and spend time with, the great stories (lore) of days gone by, and the chance to be part of said lore. That being said, I bet Joe is about to make me famous, lol!
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Todd Hughes

Is that a red thong undergarment he's wearing?????LOL> BA

mayhap, mayhap, you know Joe, anything goes!

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Todd Hughes